The United States Bridge Federation (USBF) is the
nation
A nation is a type of social organization where a collective Identity (social science), identity, a national identity, has emerged from a combination of shared features across a given population, such as language, history, ethnicity, culture, t ...
al federation for
contract bridge
Contract bridge, or simply bridge, is a trick-taking game, trick-taking card game using a standard 52-card deck. In its basic format, it is played by four players in two Team game, competing partnerships, with partners sitting opposite each othe ...
in the United States and a non-profit organization formed by the
American Contract Bridge League
The American Contract Bridge League (ACBL) is a governing body for contract bridge in the United States, Canada, Mexico, and Bermuda. It is the largest such organization in North America having the stated mission "to promote, grow and sustain the ...
(ACBL) and the
American Bridge Association (ABA) in 2001 to hold the
United States Bridge Championships and to select, train, and support Open, Women, Senior and Junior teams to represent the United States in international competition.
The USBF receives support for its teams from the ACBL International Fund and Junior Fund, its membership dues, contributions and entry fees for the USBCs.
Organization
2018 officers.
* President:
Marty Fleisher
* Vice President: Josh Parker
* CFO: Stan Subeck
* Secretary & COO:
Jan Martel
The President and the Vice President are elected for 2-year terms.
Olympic recognition
Originally, the USBF was also created to support the
World Bridge Federation
The World Bridge Federation (WBF) is the international governing body of contract bridge. The WBF is responsible for world championship competitions, most of which are conducted at a few multi-event meets on a four-year cycle. The most prestigio ...
(WBF) efforts to obtain Olympic recognition for bridge. Following August 2002 recommendations by the Olympic Programme Commission, bridge and chess were recognized as "mind sports" by the
International Olympic Committee
The International Olympic Committee (IOC; , CIO) is the international, non-governmental, sports governing body of the modern Olympic Games. Founded in 1894 by Pierre de Coubertin and Demetrios Vikelas, it is based i ...
but they were not found eligible for the main Olympic program.
On April 19, 2005, three years after that negative Commission report and three years before the
2008 Summer Olympic Games in Beijing whose program was its focus, four mind sports including bridge and chess established the
International Mind Sports Association with primary purpose to organize quadrennial World Mind Sports Games approximately alongside the Olympics.
"History"
IMSA – International Mind Sports Association (imsaworld.com). Retrieved 2014-11-05. The inaugural, 2008 World Mind Sports Games were held in Beijing during October, two months after the Summer Olympics and using the same facilities. The second, 2012 WMSG were held in Lille, France, entirely unassociated with the London Summer Olympics—smaller than in 2008, with a much smaller bridge program including no individuals, pairs, or youth events.
See also
* List of bridge federations
References
External links
*
American Bridge Association
(official)
American Contract Bridge League
(official)
{{WPCBIndex
Contract bridge governing bodies
Contract bridge in the United States
Bridge
A bridge is a structure built to Span (engineering), span a physical obstacle (such as a body of water, valley, road, or railway) without blocking the path underneath. It is constructed for the purpose of providing passage over the obstacle, whi ...